Christian Wade says ‘understanding the game’ is key for Louis Rees-Zammit in NFL

Gloucester winger Christian Wade feels “exceptional” Louis Rees-Zammit needs to keep improving his American football fluency if the former Wales rugby union player wants to succeed in the NFL.

Wade left rugby in 2018 to pursue an NFL career, making his debut with Buffalo Bills the following year and even scoring a touchdown in that pre-season game, but spent the rest of his tenure on the practice squad.

It’s a similar position to where Gloucester alumnus Rees-Zammit – now a member of Jacksonville Jaguars’ practice squad – finds himself after he was released by Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs.

‘Exceptional athlete’

Speaking at a Viagogo insights briefing, Wade said: “First of all, I think Louis is an exceptional athlete. I remember when he first came into the Premiership, he was 17, 18, this fast kid, just sprinting through guys, scoring tries for fun.

“And I was like ‘he’s definitely going to be a big star for the future.’ He’s already played for the Lions, he’s done it all. He’s an exceptional athlete, but over in America everyone is an exceptional athlete.

“So in order for you to stick out and be somebody, having a resume in college is obviously a big thing, which we don’t have as UK football players, and then also just understanding the game.

“It’s one thing if you can run fast, but the amount of information that you have to take in pre-snap, that’s a challenge I faced, and I saw a little bit of that in Louis’ pre-season games. The guys who come over from the UK, you’re fast, you want to go, but you’re doing a lot of thinking.

“That’s the only challenge I feel you need to get over.”

Wade is now back in the Gallagher Premiership with the stated aim of breaking Chris Ashton’s 101-try scoring record, and edged closer on Friday, ascending to the top of the league’s all-time hat-trick list in Gloucester’s triumph over Bristol.

His NFL career began before the league’s UK academy – now based at Loughborough – opened in 2019, though it might have started even earlier had Wade not turned down an initial Jags offer in 2015.

Video game controller

One of his less conventional pieces of advice for UK NFL hopefuls hoping to improve their gridiron nous before crossing the Atlantic is to pick up a video game controller.

“People say just play Madden,” he explained. “To be fair, the Madden 101 tutorial is actually very, very detailed. In 2016, the NFL sent it to me, and I was doing as much as possible in there, just the fundamentals.”

Wade also enlisted his wife, Lisa, to help with homework, the pair spending endless hours drilling plays until they became second nature.

More structured routes have since been established through the Academy and the International Player Pathway, the latter facilitating both Wade and Rees-Zammit’s moves.

Those programmes exist in large part due to the league’s symbiotic success in growing a fanbase in the UK, according to Viagogo data the largest market for NFL ticket sales outside North America.

Last season also marked the first time UK fans accounted for more sales for its London games than overseas buyers (53 per cent vs 47 per cent), with this season’s meetings in the capital – which begin on Sunday – on course for a repeat.

The last two games will see Rees-Zammit’s new club play at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Wembley, one year after Jacksonville became the first NFL franchise to feature in back-to-back games overseas.

Optimistic

Wade is optimistic that if Rees-Zammit puts in the work, leaning on veterans, watching video and soaking up as much as he can of the NFL’s extensive pre-game prep and meetings, the Welshman has a shot.

“A lot of the time it’s 80 per cent believing in yourself that you can do it, that you can make this play,” he told the PA news agency.

“A lot of the guys in America, they do a lot of talking.

“Self-talk, hype, being loud, whatever you need to give you that confidence, you do it. This is how I’m going to perform, and if it doesn’t happen it doesn’t happen.

“But it will happen, eventually, if you believe it, keep training the way you’re supposed to train, and going about it the right way.”